Friday, April 10, 2015

5 Tools That Will Help You Make More Money Writing Online

Before I took the leap into the freelance writing business, I worked as a
tradesman in the construction industry. Jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none was my career focus, and I've carried many job titles over the years.

I spent the better part of a decade framing walls and setting trusses as a residential carpenter. Then several years came when I craved independence, so I decided to work as an independent contractor installing satellite television systems. While living in Hawaii, I tried my hand as a finisher on a drywall crew, worked as a maintenance man for an apartment complex and built cabinets at a shop by the beach.

I've been called a mason, a landscaper, an electrician, a handyman and a bunch of other titles that have since slipped my mind. While all of those jobs are considered labor-intensive, they're actually pretty different in scope. One thing that they do have in common, however, is the need for tools to get anything done.

When I first began writing, I was excited to finally have a job that didn't require lugging an overstuffed box or belt of heavy items back and forth to work every day. But over the years I have come to realize that a successful freelance writer should have a toolbox of their own.

This list covers just a few of the more important apps, programs, sites and extensions I keep handy at all times. I will add more as I find them and will update the post with the best tools from your comments, so be sure to let us know your favorite freelance writing resources. Plus, just by commenting, you'll be entered into the Grammarly Giveaway. More info at the bottom of this post.

Okay, so this isn’t what you probably expected to see at the top of this list. But it could help your freelance writing business in more ways than any distraction eliminating word processor or Web based editing program. It’s all about thinking outside of the box when imagining how Jotform can benefit your specific content strategies. Let me explain my thought process regarding the benefits of this Web app for writers.

First, if you’re serious about being a Web writer, then you have an online portfolio and probably a blog. Now, if you’re like me and tighter than a New Jersey face-lift with your money, then you’re not about to pay someone to build those sites. But that can lead to certain situations where you may be left scratching your head wondering what the hell compelled you to build a site from scratch. Fortunately, some totally awesome dudes and dudettes decided to take pity on us “normies” and created Jotform.

Building a functional form can be difficult without a damn good grasp of several coding languages as well as an understanding of all that server-side mumbo jumbo. Hell, you probably don’t even have enough time to work on your paying jobs much less learn some complicated hieroglyphics. That’s why Jotform is one of my most beloved tools.

Even if you have a basic portfolio site, you probably have a contact page on there somewhere. (If not, then you’re missing the point of an Online portfolio) The limitations of those provided by most Content Management Systems like Wordpress, Blogger, Weebly etc, etc leave a lot to be desired.

Since the main point of your portfolio is to show the best face you can to potential clients, sending them to a shabby and out-dated contact page that’s limited to three or four data fields can make you look unprofessional and amateur to say the least.

Instead, imagine creating a contact page with personalized questions and dynamically updating fields that your clients can adjust or remove. Perhaps you want people to upload additional info in the form of a Doc or a JPEG, a PDF, a video or any number of other formats. Now imagine what you could do with any of your portfolio pages and even widgets in sidebars or emails to your clients.

Do you offer detailed services that aren’t easily explained? Provide answers via a client questionnaire and gain insights into the real needs of your customers.

Maybe you sell Online training courses or special events that require detailed scheduling? You can drop a sharp looking calendar or seating chart right into a form that tracks attendance, organizes ticket purchases or simply gives the client power to choose a time and date that is convenient for them.

As if it wasn’t already insanely awesome, Jotform is also virtually free. There are some paid levels available, but they’re unnecessary until you have a lot of traffic and a huge email list. At that point, you’ll happily toss them a few bucks a month for more submissions, a bigger chunk of storage and the ability to add team members.

So, if you haven’t heard of Jotform, you should check it out right now (in a new tab of course). Look at the categories of pre-made templates before you begin. There are hundreds available and browsing through them will give you an idea of the kind of things you can do with Jotform.

Do you cringe when you have to update your writer's portfolio because Wordpress is "too in-depth?"

Do you cower at the thought of endlessly adjusting hexadecimal color codes in an attempt to make your site look less like a toddler's coloring book and more like Da Vinci's Mona Lisa?

If you despise WYSIWYG site builders, then you'll probably hate Jotform. If that's the case, allow me to build your forms for you.

Simply click the Michael's Portfolio linkand find theRequest a Quote menu item. Schedule a Consultation, and we'll discuss your options. Any cost will be based on discounted friend prices and depending on the form's complexity, I may just build it for FREE. The Request a Quote and Consultation is free, too, so what are you waiting for?

2. Lazarus Form Recovery - A Firefox and Chrome Extension that May Just Keep You from Murdering Your Computer

Here’s the setup: It’s 3 AM. You’ve been writing all night to meet a 6 AM deadline and are putting the finishing touches on a 2,000-word blog post for one of the many Wordpress sites you manage. Suddenly, the power goes out in your home and your heart sinks as your desktop computer blinks off. The sheer amount of emotions brewing and bubbling within your chest makes your eyes twitch with an anger that any outsider would be wise to avoid.

Every single word you wrote just disappeared like a small puff of smoke. All that hard work... gone in an instant. The only thing that remains is an impending deadline and the likely fact that you’ll have fewer clients in the morning.

You reach for the computer tower, committed to its destruction as a means of revenge. From a dark corner comes a timid voice.

“Please, Daddy! Don’t kill the computer," your daughter says meekly.

You ignore her pleas. Murder has filled your twitchy eyes and not even a super cute little buddy like her can prevent the death of this tower. Rationality took flight when those words disappeared from the screen.

But wait a minute psycho... Didn’t you install a new extension called Lazarus the other day?

Isn’t it supposed to recover form data on Webpage’s just like this one?

I mean, that was what the Lazarus extension page said when you installed it,

right?

So, let’s hold off on crushing that tower for just a second. Okay, buddy?

Yep, that’s exactly what this God-send of an extension was created to prevent; the innocent deaths of computer towers everywhere. And the Lazarus creators couldn’t have made it easier.

After you’ve taken a few deep breaths and counted to ten, turn the power back on and open a Chrome or Firefox browser (Sorry IE, maybe you should think about not sucking so much). Once on the Web, open the tab you were working in and look for the little Lazarus symbol on the side of a form field. Click it and watch as all that hard work reappears without a single exasperated scream or irrational act of violence.

Pssst.... Some folks say that the Firefox version is more reliable than the Chrome variety. I use Chrome, and it has saved my computer’s life on countless occasions without any failures. Supposedly there are some site forms that it isn’t compatible with but I have yet to find one.

3. FocusWriter - Distraction-Free Writing without All the Distractions

Many writers, me included, are easily distracted by the fun things and addictive diversions filling the 21st century Internet. Having a distraction-free workspace where we can escape may be the only reason we actually get anything done.

There are literally hundreds of different distraction-free writing tools available on every type of device out there. This huge supply must mean that a large percentage of us find it hard to ignore a thirsty farm or a candy crush even when we should be putting pen to paper (fingers to keyboard?).

Some of the programs have so many options and settings that they become a distraction all their own. Others cost a small fortune for what amounts to nothing more than a glorified Notepad with a few aesthetic touches or unique settings.

One called WriteOrDie actually holds your words hostage and deletes them if you fail to meet a preset goal. (You can change this setting, but I had to laugh at the extremes people will take to force themselves to write)

After testing many of the choices available, I was going to suggest that you might have a better experience lugging that old typewriter down from the attic and simply turning the computer off. But then I found FocusWriter.

And before you ask the answer is YES.

Yes, FocusWriter being FREE had a lot to do with my choice.

Yes, I don’t particularly think you should have to pay for something that REMOVES things from your screen.

Yes, I would find it very, very difficult to spend a dime on something that has roughly the same amount of options as Notepad.

No, I don’t think that makes me cheap. I prefer frugal.

Anyways, FocusWriter is a simple but effective distraction-free writing tool as well as a time management device. It allows you to set alarms and track daily progress while keeping you motivated with the authentic clickety-clack of an old timey typewriter. And there’s nothing more motivating than an old ass typewriter clanging loudly over and over and over.

You can adjust a number of settings and personalize themes to get that perfect feel. It also includes the most common word processor elements that make writing on a computer easy and efficient.

But it’s not overloaded with options. In fact, simplicity is kind of the point of FocusWriter so if you like a bunch of bells and whistles, then this probably isn’t the distraction-free writer’s software for you.

However, FocusWriter is one of the few cross-platform options available out of the myriad of Mac or Windows dedicated varieties.

Did I mention that FocusWriter is completely free? Well, it is so go ahead and grab it.

Pssst... There’s a bunch of available themes for FocusWriter on the Web, and you can even make your own.

4. Hemingway – When You Want the Help of an Editor without All the Other Bullshit

Oh my golly, Miss Molly! This little sucker could rival Jotform for the number one spot. In fact, I use Hemingway damn near every single day. I use it so much that it has become an integral part of my proofreading and editing process.

Since I learned about it over a year ago, I haven’t let a single piece of content leave my hands without running it through Hemingway at least once. It’s the most brilliant Web-based tool a writer could ever want, and it deserves a place in everyone's toolbox.

It’s a pretty simple concept with easy-to-understand, color coded highlights. In its barest form, Hemingway is a software program that selects basic flow errors a real person would find in an article but without all the typical human crap many editors add to the process.

It allows you to polish up your writing in a consistent fashion so it isn’t plagued by an overabundance of adverbs or awkward sentences.

However, I have found that there’s a method for using Hemingway that ensures you don’t get stuck writing and fixing, writing and fixing.

That method is simple:

I first write the article to completion in my word processor.

Then I proofread and edit it with my own two eyes to catch any glaring mistakes.

After that, I read the entire article out loud and further tweak the flow and word usage.

Only after I am completely satisfied with the document do I enter it into Hemingway.

Once it's in the app, I go through and fix all of the Red colored “Very Hard to Read” sentences first.

Then I try to rewrite as many of the Yellow “Hard to Read” highlights that sound awkward to me.

After that, I remove excess adverbs and adjust the Purple phrases for simplicity.

Bingo. Bango. The article is ready for delivery to the client, and you are free to move on to the next project.

Recently, the creators of Hemingway released an updated Beta version with some limited Web style markups such as H1, H2 and H3 tags as well as Hyperlinks and Lists. There’s also a new Desktop version for those who like to work offline.

Finally, Hemingway includes a handy breakdown of base elements such as wordcount, character count, sentences and paragraphs. It also provides a nice little read time estimator.

Oh, and I failed to mention the greatest thing about this must-have freelance writer’s tool: It’s completely free! So go bookmark it or download the desktop version and add it to your toolbox.

Pssst… I'm pretty sure the Hemingway App was named in honor of a writer. But don't quote me on that.

Hey, mind mapping is great, don’t get me wrong. But it was just as effective when we made them on a piece of paper. However, MindMeister is one of the best Internet-based varieties that I’ve tried. The public databases of user-created Maps are overlooked gems containing vast knowledge. (The mind map in the image above is a HUGE resource for technical researchers and you can find it here) The mind mapping tools are easy to use and packed with features.

I’m not going to go into a lot of detail about this tool. As writers, you all are probably fully aware of how effective a mind map can be at fleshing out any type of writing project. I chose this Chrome app over others like Evernote and Wunderlist because it’s less touted as a must-have and extremely beneficial for developing conceptual ideas. Something writers do every single day.

And would I include MindMeister if I couldn’t say that it’s free? Nope, I would not. (There's paid options but the free version is fully featured)

So if you’re having a difficult time outlining your next novel or coming up with an idea for an email series, hop over and hook your Chrome browser up with MindMeister.

Pssst… I don’t have a super duper secret to whisper in your ear about this one. Sorry, I've failed you miserably thus I shall crieth in thine car.

Community Question: What tools are most important to your success in the freelance writing business?

A forum response will guarantee that we have your name and email on record so that we can contact you if you win. However, a post comment is also acceptable as long as you use your Gmail or OpenID details. Any commenter posting anonymously or without an email is automatically disqualified.

Once you've posted your answer, your name will be entered into the drawing for the FREE 3-Month Grammarly.com Membership and the winner will be announced during the second week of May, 2015.

24 comments :

I have adult ADHD and, to be honest, I probably have a caffeine addiction as well. I always have a hard time focusing on reading or writing when there is noise in the background, like the sounds of a television set or my husband playing video games. However, I also struggle to focus when I'm surrounded by total silence. One tool I use to get around this is Coffitivity (https://coffitivity.com/), a website that lets you listen to the sounds of a busy coffee shop. "But wait," I hear you saying. "Isn't that just as distracting?" Actually, no, and there have been studies (based on real science!) that show this kind of ambient background noise can actually increase your productivity! But what if you'd rather listen to the sounds of being in a church during Mass, or the sounds of being in a factory, or the sounds of wooden wind chimes hitting each other during a windy summer thunderstorm? Believe it or not, there is a website for that, and it is simply the most incredible site I have found in all my 17 years on the Internet (my mom finally got us a dial-up connection back in '98). The site is called MyNoise (http://mynoise.net/noiseMachines.php) and comes with dozens of free sound generators that are all customizable. For a donation of $5, you gain even wider access to what essentially amounts to an infinite number of soundscapes. My final contribution belongs to a totally different category, and I haven't yet had the chance to check it out myself: it's a set of 151 links to various resources for marketers, downloadable for free at http://offers.hubspot.com/marketing-browser-bookmarks. Like I said, I haven't actually visited any of the websites yet, but the links look like they would be extremely useful to someone in need of marketing advice. I hope you enjoy my suggestions, and happy writing!

Awesome, Shauna. Being a member of the blog or forum ensures you have first access when we launch the Freelancer's Community Co-Operative site later this year. Thanks for joining and I look forward to getting to know you better! All the freelance success to you!

Hey dude…good article. You are the best writer that I have come across so far. You have a knack for words, I must say. I have bookmarked your web page. Please keep writing such wonderful blogs. For freelancers, who are working to earn the extra bucks…your article is worth millions of dollars. You are my FPG (friend, philosopher and guide)! I have wholeheartedly stepped into the freelance zone and checked out some sites like Latest Logo Design, Professional Logo Design. You have woken me up to the possibilities of marketplaces. Thank you and keep posting!

Hi… by the look of your website I gather that you are a professional. Can you help me make money, blogging? I have a few sample articles. Can I send it to you for your review? I have already begun posting my skills on sites like video marketing online , virtual assistant jobs. Quite a number of buyers have responded. I like to post my blogs on other marketplaces too. Do you have any suggestions?

Thank you all for your comments. I'm entering each of you into the Grammarly Drawing on May 15th.

@Mark Anthony - Man, thanks so much for your kind words. That's why I love this blog. I don't make anything significant financially, but I earn a 6 figure salary in good feelings and positive vibrations when my freelance friends like you tell me that what I've written has helped them in some way. That's like my fuel to power me through all the deadlines and dull topics that face me each day. If you need anything, do not hesitate to use the Contact Michael link up in the nav menu. Or join the Forum and ask whatever you like. We think of it as our little freelancing family forum, so all are welcome as long as they proudly claim freelancer as part of their job-title.

@Robert - Robert, use the Contact Michael form and upload your sample articles. Explain in the additional details box what you're trying to accomplish with these articles. For example, are you going to send them as part of a query letter to an editor of a publication? Or are they for your own personal blog? Upload the documents on the form and let me know any details that will help me help you. I'll get back to you within 48 hours. Hope this helps!

Good luck to everyone, and I wish you all success in your freelancing endeavors. So, until next time, take care of yourselves and each other.

I like the lazurs extension. It daily happens with me I wrote article and in the final touches light gones and all my work and time is waste due to large scale load sheddigng in my country. Really helpful article (Y)

I was also a jack of all trades master of none before. But having a versatility talent doesn't mean you have the path of going to nowhere, it's just the ability or something that tells us out how capable we are to do different things.

@Chat Rooms, Nice site at www.educhatforums.com/ Thanks for sharing. Lazarus has saved my sanity countless times. It's an honest to goodness digital life preserver. @Product Description: If I gave you the impression that I thought being a Jack of All, Master of None is a bad thing, then I apologize for my lack of clarity. I am grateful for the amount of knowledge I have been able to collect over the years. And you're absolutely right about versatility and flexibility. We Jacks can tackle nearly any niche, no matter how obscure, and create informative content that reads as if it was written by a master in that niche.

Wait, did I just read a tools article that actually recommends useful tools? I mean I could be tripping but I am pretty damn sure this article actually provides good advice that's recent and thus viable. Forgive me if I sound shocked and seem surprised to the fact that I didn't just waste ten minutes reading what turned out to be nothing more than reworded upchuck covered better in at least a hundred other blogposts. Well I guess I'm awake and this ain't a dream. It sure does feel nice to read something of value every once in a while online. Thanks writer for creating a tools list based on your own experiences and not taking the easy way out like far too many Web writers are doing nowadays. Your article is a valuable piece of info from which I learned a new thing or two that may actually help me produce more billable hours than I do right now. That's high praise seldom given out for web content. Yours deserves it. Thanks and keep slapping those keys please, you're an asset to freelance writers everywhere!

Main problem while using these forms is that these are not available for free. If these are free then these have limited features or limited number of submissions per month. Dissertation writing service